Best sets on broadway — Page 2

I prefer shows where you can see your buck in the performances and material.

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Aida's set impresses me because of it's elegance. It's not a jaw-dropper; it's the "why didn't I think of that" brilliance of, for example, having a backdrop become a tent. It's a kind of "abstraction" that you don't see in many sets today, where the emphasis is usually on realism.

Of course, I really have no idea what I'm talking about

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When I saw Aida on tour, "My Strongest Suit" set was 3-D. I also feel that the reason Aida's sets are so amazing is the lighting design.

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The tent trick in Aida was done in Once on This Island, but that type of clever staging was used more consistantly and with more ingenuity. I think what really bothered me about Aida was that the story claimed to be a flashback from modern day to ancient Egypt, yet there was little of anything Egytian in its design. Had the story been transposed to a more modern setting somewhat like Rent or West Side Story, I might have felt differently. It just didn't work for me.

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See, I think the WICKED sets are too needlessly elaborate and fussy. And I thought the huge mechanical dragon would "do" more, or at least be more used.

The 'ne plus ultra' of sets is HAIRSPRAY. Witty and inventive, with throwaway stage gags going off like firecrackers. Colors were either pale pastels or deep, rich purples, reds and oranges which teased the eye without assaulting it.

I did not care for NEVER GONNA DACE, but thought the sets and lighting were quietly elegant and easy on the eyes. Ditto THE PRODUCERS sets which are clever and understated when they need be. I wonder if its production designer took a cue from Robert Usher's Broadway sets from the Harry Richman film PUTTIN'ON THE RITZ.

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I agree that the lighting for Aida was good, but that backdrop of the "prison" which consisted of the 70s optical illusion design with little men painted inside was kind of silly.

The one good thing I remember about Thou Shalt Not was the use three non-cocentric turntables. They created very interesting movement patterns, especially during the Tugboat sequence, the only scene I felt worked well in the show.

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I thought the set of The Crucible (last year) was outstanding.

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La Boheme
Aida
Wicked
Mornings at Seven
Private Lives